Hear Jay Ramsay's 'Angel of the North'

Watch Her Feet as Two White Swans & Colorado by Aidan Andrew Dun

Awen's spoken word showcase, Garden of Awen returns this midwinter with a solstice extravaganza entitled 'Midnight Sun'. A constellation of Stroud-based authors will be shining on the evening of 21st December - the longest night of the year - at the Lansdown Hall. Jay Ramsay and Kevan Manwaring will be celebrating the launch of their new collections, Places of Truth & The Immanent Moment. There will be Yuletide-spiced poetry, storytelling, music and dance - with contributions from a glittering array of local talent including Adam Horovitz; Gabriel Bradford Millar; Anthony Nanson; Jehanne and Rob Mehta; Herewood Gabriel; and ... you! There will be (limited) floor spots for poems, songs or stories on a winter theme (3 mins). Guests are invited to 'dress to dazzle' and help create a mandala of light - designed by Maria Sophia Rose. Tickets are £8 in advance from Lansdown Hall, or £10 on the door - free glass of mulled wine and a mince pie on arrival. We hope you can join us to: shine bright in the year's midnight!

See diary for further details

Earlier this month Awen author Jay Ramsay attended a conference in Assisi as Poet-in-Residence, on behalf of the Alliance of Religions and Conservation (ARC). The focus of the conference was the Green Pilgrimage Network. Having been poet in residence for the 1995 summit at Windsor Castle, Jay was invited back to celebrate where it all began—in Assisi 25 years ago, the very same year (1986) our demand on the planet officially exceeded its resources, when ARC was formed by Martin Palmer.

Princess Michael of Kent was the visiting royal this time in Prince Philip's place, at very short notice. Two intense days of power point presentations and discussions about how to further green collective consciousness through the faiths, with all the delegates handed Soul of the Earth flyers! And a unitive spirit breathing among everyone... Jay has penned a sublime poetry sequence as a result of his residency.In his introduction the poet wrote: At the heart of its all is the place we met, Assisi, and of course St Francis, whose life so reflected our own turning within, finding the ground of real inner change that is essential to our collective transformation, painfully slow as it can seem. Finally it is a testament to what Francis embraced: not only Nature, but Love (both together)—and love as our real nature in which alone all things are possible.